Memrise vs Borne
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Memrise
Learn over 40 languages through immersive lessons that simulate real-life conversations and cultural experiences. Practice vocabulary, listening, and speaking with AI-powered bots and native speaker videos to build confidence and speak like a local.
- Real-life conversation simulation
- Cultural insights
- Vocabulary and listening practice
- Speaking practice with AI
- Native speaker videos
- Learn over 40 languages
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Memrise is a language learning app for people who have a specific reason to learn. Trusted by 80 million learners, Memrise offers specialised courses for your goals: passing an exam, speaking confidently at work, building relationships, or discovering cultures you love. Unlike gamified apps with robotic voices, it's built around real native-speaker videos - so you learn to speak like real people. Learn Spanish, Korean, Japanese or 136 other languages in lessons that teach you vocabulary, listening and speaking as if you were a local living in the country. 15 NEW languages to learn from: Afrikaans, Ancient Greek, Latin, Finnish, Irish, Czech, Hungarian, Cantonese, Romanian, Esperanto, Croatian, Kurdish, Serbian, Bulgarian, Azerbaijani * Showing you how to piece together natural sentences, preparing you for everyday conversation * Giving you a place to practice role-play and gain confidence * Teaching you the cultural nuances you need to feel like a local Memrise is the best language-learning app for beginners that are starting to learn a language from scratch, intermediate learners that want to build on their listening and speaking, and advanced learners who are looking to improve their conversational skills. Download Memrise so that you can confidently: * Connect with your partner and their family * Have a better time while travelling * Sharpen your mind if you’re learning a language for brain health * Prepare for a language exam * Connect with work colleagues * Better understand different cultures How do we help you have conversations in other languages? * Choose from hundreds of real-life scenarios * Practice listening to native speaker videos using what you’ve just learned * Then build confidence speaking with AI Buddies, your personalised language learning bots - Helping 80+ million learners speak confidently - Featured in BBC World Service, Forbes, The Verge, The Financial Times, and more What other learners are saying "I've been using Memrise for about two years, studying European Portuguese. I have the paid version - it's a solid learning tool, and it has been my primary resource ever since got it. I find the Learn with Locals feature to be especially useful, more so as my Portuguese improves. My wife and I spent a couple of weeks in Portugal a few months ago, and we were able to handle all of our transactions - stores, restaurants, markets, car rental, etc!" - Voloúre Need to speak a new language soon? Get the practice you need with Memrise Pro - Unlock all vocab lessons - Unlock all native speaker videos - Unlimited speaking practice - Ad free Compare with our Free Plan - Limited vocab lessons - Limited videos and conversations - Ads Download our app for free and start learning with Memrise today: Learn French, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Mexico), German, Korean, Japanese, Japanese (no script), Turkish, Italian, Chinese (simplified), Dutch, Portuguese (Portugal), Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Swedish, Norwegian, Polish, Danish, Slovenian, Icelandic, Yoruba, Mongolian, English (UK) and English (US)! ------ *PLEASE READ: A Memrise Pro subscription are designed for Memrise-approved courses. A subscription is required in order to access all our learning features. These features may vary depending on your device's language and language pair. Once purchased, subscriptions will automatically renew unless cancelled before the end of the current payment period. Subscriptions can be managed or cancelled in your Apple App Store account. In-app Permissions – To enable some of the features of the Memrise app we may need to ask for your permission. For example, we'll ask to access your microphone if you'd like to practice your pronunciation skills. You can change permissions at any time in your settings. Privacy Policy: https://www.memrise.com/privacy/ Terms of Use: https://www.memrise.com/terms/
Borne
Master new languages with an AI tutor that offers real-world conversations and instant feedback. Practice speaking anytime, anywhere, and build confidence in a judgment-free environment. Achieve fluency faster with personalized lessons tailored to your goals.
- Real-world conversation practice
- AI-powered adaptive learning
- Instant feedback on pronunciation and grammar
- Personalized lessons for various goals
- Multilingual support
- Progress tracking
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Speak Confidently with Borne: Your AI Language Tutor Master Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Portuguese, English, or German with Borne—your personal AI language tutor designed to make language learning fun, flexible and effective. Engage in real-world conversations tailored to your skill level, practice anytime, anywhere, and start speaking in days, not months. Whether you’re a beginner, a student, a traveler, or a polyglot, Borne can help you achieve fluency. Why Choose Borne? • Real Conversations: Practice natural dialogues with an AI that adapts to your unique learning pace. Borne is your partner in mastering conversational skills for the real-world. • Learn Anytime, Anywhere: No rigid schedules. Borne fits your busy lifestyle, offering 24/7 language practice on your phone. • Instant Feedback: Receive real-time corrections on grammar, pronunciation and vocabulary to improve with every conversation. • Judgment-Free Learning: Make mistakes, learn quickly, and build confidence in a safe, supportive environment. • Affordable and Accessible: Enjoy high-quality language tutoring at a fraction of the cost of traditional tutors or language classes. • Personalized Learning: From greetings to advanced discussions, Borne tailors lessons to your goals, whether for travel, work or personal growth. How Borne Works Borne leverages cutting-edge AI technology to deliver immersive language lessons that mimic native dialogues. Choose your language — Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch, Swedish, Portuguese, English, or German — and dive into customized conversations that match your level and interests. Practice speaking, listening and comprehension through dialogues that feel authentic, helping you sound like a native speaker. Whether you’re preparing for a trip, boosting your career, or exploring a new culture, Borne makes language mastery achievable and enjoyable. Key Features • Interactive Lessons: Engage in dynamic conversations that evolve with your progress. • Multilingual Support: Learn multiple languages simultaneously to become a polyglot. • Cultural Insights: Gain context about customs and phrases to connect more deeply with native speakers. • Progress Tracking: Monitor your improvement with clear, motivating milestones. Start Your Language Journey Today Download Borne now and try a free conversation to experience AI-powered language learning. From beginner Spanish to advanced German, unlock fluency with an AI tutor that’s always ready to guide you. Join thousands of learners worldwide who are speaking confidently with Borne! Why Learners Love Borne: • Speak Spanish, French, German, and more from day one • AI-powered tutor with voice recognition for real speaking practice • Perfect for beginners, travelers, students, and professionals • Practice vocabulary, grammar, listening and speaking in context • Supports accent training and fluency for real-world conversations • Fun, fast-paced daily practice that keeps you motivated • Better than language apps with flashcards – speak naturally instead! Order tapas in Spain or negotiate in German with confidence! Borne’s gamified lessons and advanced voice tech refine your accent to sound native. Unlock new words as you level up. Enjoy a 3-day free trial to test your skills risk-free. Learn Swedish, Dutch, and more with fun, daily practice that fits your life. Speak Spanish, French, Italian, English, Swedish, German, Dutch or Portuguese with confidence from day one! Subscription Details Ready to unlock premium features? Choose a plan that fits your needs! If you choose a Premium plan with Borne, payment will be charged to your Apple account, with renewal charged within 24 hours prior to the end of the current period. Auto-renewal can be disabled anytime in your App Store settings. Any unused portion of a free trial will be forfeited upon purchasing a subscription. Privacy Policy: https://borne.ai/privacy-policy/ Terms of Service: https://borne.ai/terms-of-service/
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is ads: Borne at none against Memrise's shown. Borne also leads on review sentiment (100% vs 68%) and update cadence (weekly vs fortnightly). Memrise's advantage is ratings volume (217K vs 66) and chart position (#136 vs unranked). On price, rating, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Memrise sells 14 in-app purchases, starting at $2.99 per 7 days and Borne sells 12 in-app purchases, starting at $5.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.
Borne holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Memrise has 217K ratings behind it against 66, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 68% of Memrise's written reviews are positive against 100% of Borne's.
Memrise ships an update fortnightly, Borne weekly. The most recent releases landed on September 25, 2026 and August 7, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Memrise | Borne |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.8 (217K ratings) | 5.0 (66 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 68.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 217K — better | 66 |
| Update frequency | Fortnightly | Weekly — better |
| Ads | Yes | No — better |
| In-app purchases | Yes | Yes |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free with in-app purchases |
| Best chart rank | #136 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPod |
| Requires iOS | 15.0 | 13.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 238 MB | 120 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Memrise Limited | Mereo Technologies Inc. |
Customer experience
Memrise
Borne
User reviews
Memrise
From 217K App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Great for learning basics
- 👍 Engaging and fun learning experience
- 👍 Effective memorization techniques
- 👍 Useful for supplementing language learning
- 👍 Variety of languages available
Room to improve
- 💰 Subscription is too expensive
- 🔒 Limited functionality without subscription
- 🐛 Bugs and glitches in the app
- 🤖 AI conversations are not very helpful
- 🤔 Transition from basics to more advanced content is too abrupt
Borne
From 66 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 👍 Easy to use and navigate
- 🗣️ Great for practicing speaking and fluency
- 💡 Interactive and engaging learning
- 🤖 AI understands and adapts conversations
- 💰 Affordable alternative to tutors
Bugs and requests
Memrise
Reported bugs
4 issues- App crashes or freezes during lessons
- Inconsistent performance across devices
- Issues with syncing progress across devices
- Incorrect translations or pronunciations in some courses
Requested features
6 requests- Add more advanced content and courses
- Improve AI conversation feature
- Allow more control over review and repetition
- Provide offline access to courses
- Improve search and discovery of community courses
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- Add support for writing practice and handwriting recognition
Borne
Requested features
1 request- Dark mode option
In-app purchases
Memrise
- Weekly Language Learning Plan$2.997 Days
- Monthly Language Learning Plan$24.991 Month
- 3-Month Language Learning Plan$24.993 Months
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- 30% off Annual Memrise Pro$42.991 Year
- Memrise Subscription Offer$58.991 Year
- Memrise Subscription Offer1 Month trial$59.991 Month
- Annual Language Learning Plan$61.991 Year
- Memrise Annual Pro$61.991 Year
- Memrise Subscription Offer1 Year trial$61.991 Year
- Memrise Subscription Offer$79.991 Year
- Lifetime Plan Offer$98.99
- Lifetime Plan Offer$131.99
- Lifetime Plan Offer$164.99
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- Lifetime Plan$329.99
Borne
- Borne Basic$5.991 Month
- Borne Premium (Monthly)3 Days trial$9.991 Month
- Borne Premium (Monthly)$9.991 Month
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- Borne Standard$9.991 Month
- Borne Premium$14.991 Month
- Borne Premium (Annual)$49.991 Year
- Borne Premium (Annual)$69.991 Year
- Borne Premium (Annual)3 Days trial$69.991 Year
- 1 Hour of Conversation$1.99
- Premium Plan - Extra Hour$1.99
- Basic Plan - Extra Hour$2.99
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- Standard Plan - Extra Hour$2.99









